


Announcement

by FloreatCastellum



Series: Slice of Life One-Shots [45]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Even soppier than my usual stuff, Fluff, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, sickly sweet fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-08
Updated: 2019-06-08
Packaged: 2020-04-23 01:49:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,323
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19141147
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FloreatCastellum/pseuds/FloreatCastellum
Summary: Teddy turns up at the Potter family home to share some news.





	Announcement

Dinner had long been finished, but Harry had just caught James raiding the pantry. 

‘These were meant to be for tomorrow,’ he was lecturing him sternly. 'We can never keep anything in this house, you devour it before I’ve unpacked the shopping bags-’

'I left some, I didn’t eat them all-’

'What am I supposed to do with two sausages for a family of five, James?’

'Toad in the hole?' 

'Too much hole, not enough toad,’ said Harry. 'Right, you can be the one to walk into the village tomorrow - don’t pull that face - and as well as more sausages, you can pick something up for breakfast too, seeing as you finished off the last of the bread and all-’

'But that means I’ll have to get up really early,’ replied James, looking horrified. 

'You’ll live.' 

'Dad!’ Lily was yelling. 

'What?’ he bellowed over his shoulder. 

'There’s someone knocking on the door loads! Mum can’t get it, she’s in the bath!' 

'Well you could answer it, Lils!’ he shouted back. He turned back to James. 'I’m not joking, you’re doing it - if you don’t get up in time for breakfast, I’ll send your mum up to get you out of bed - and I’ll tell her who ate that entire pack of gingernuts last week too.' 

Ignoring his eldest’s groans, he left the pantry, and could immediately hear the rapid knocking Lily had been shouting about. Clearly, she had decided not to answer it. 

He went to the front porch, glancing up the stairs as he did - Al was loitering on the landing. 'There’s someone at the door,’ he said. 

'Yes,’ said Harry wearily. 'I can hear that.' 

He opened the door, and Teddy Lupin nearly fell onto him. 'Ted!’ Harry said in surprise, as Teddy pulled himself and grasped the front of Harry’s robes. 

'It’s a girl - a little girl-’

'The- The baby? But she wasn’t due until-’

'She’s a bit early, but she’s fine!’ Teddy cried joyfully. 'A little girl!' 

Harry embraced him, some kind of shout had come from his mouth, but he wasn’t sure what he was saying - he pulled Teddy into the kitchen, still with his arm slung around his shoulders.

'She’s beautiful,’ Ted was saying loudly. 'So beautiful-’

Lily and Al had come running down the stairs, James poked his head out of the pantry. 'What’s going on?’ he asked. 

'I have a daughter!’ Teddy shouted.

'Oh my god!’ squealed Lily, running to him and flinging her arms around his waist. 'Teddy! A little girl! Oh my gosh!' 

'James, get the firewhiskey - I hid it in the bag of rice at the back-’ said Harry. 

'Yeah, I know where it is,’ said James.

'Congratulations,’ Al was saying, looking delighted. 'Does she have a name yet?’

'Is she beautiful?’ Lily was still squealing. 'I thought she wasn’t coming for another month - who does she look like?' 

'She looks just like Vic,’ gabbled Teddy. 'Except when she was born she had blonde hair, and it’s already turned brown and black and red - I think it was lilac when I left.' 

'Dad,’ said James, surprised. 'You’re crying.' 

'No I’m not,’ said Harry quickly, taking the glass of firewhiskey his son was holding out to him and handing it to Teddy. 'I’m just so happy for you, Ted, so happy-’

'What’s going on?’ asked Ginny, coming into the kitchen in a fluffy bathrobe with her hair wrapped in a towel. 'I heard shouting-’ She paused as she spotted Teddy, and the firewhiskey, and everyone hugging him - her eyes widened. 'The baby?' 

'Yes, yes,’ laughed Teddy. 'A little girl - Dora, we’ve called her, after Mum-’

'Daddy!’ exclaimed Lily, moving from Teddy to hug her father. 

'I’m fine,’ Harry insisted, though his vision was blurred. 'Teddy, this is such wonderful news, congratulations - you’re a father now-’

Ginny was hugging Ted too now, peppering him with kisses. 'When can we meet her? Oh, I want to see her!' 

'Yes!’ said Lily quickly. 'I thought we were going to have to go back to school before she was born, I want to meet her!' 

'Soon,’ Teddy laughed. 'Bill and Fleur are round now, and Nana - I thought I should come and tell you all- I have a family-’

'You’ve always had a family!’ said Lily, but Harry understood, and he pulled Teddy into another fierce hug. 

'No happiness like it, is there?’ he said. 

'None at all,’ said Teddy, looking dazed. 

Harry looked down at his own children, and promptly took a glass of firewhiskey out of James’s hand. 'I’m celebrating,’ James protested. 

'Celebrate with butterbeer,’ said Harry. 'There’s some on the bottom shelf.’

'Just because I pointed out you’re crying,’ muttered James quietly, but he and Al went to the pantry. 

Harry drained the rest of his son’s sneaky drink, and turned back to Teddy. 'But she’s OK, just a bit early?' 

'She’s a little small, but the midwitch wasn’t worried,’ said Teddy, beaming with pride. 'Healthy set of lungs on her - and it all happened so quickly, I still can’t quite believe it.' 

'I wish mine had been quick,’ remarked Ginny. 'And Victoire’s all right?' 

'Yes, she was brilliant, just brilliant. I couldn’t believe it, she’s so strong.’

Al handed his mother and Lily a bottle of butterbeer each, and Harry nudged Ted. 'It’s your toast to make, Ted.' 

Teddy held up his glass. 'To Dora Apolline Lupin, the most perfect witch I have ever seen!’

'To Dora!’ they echoed, and Harry brought the glass to his lips as quickly as he could, trying to steady his throat, still gripping Ted’s shoulder hard. 

'I should get back,’ Teddy was saying, still looking deliriously happy. 'I should get back to her-’

'Yes,’ said Ginny warmly. 'Go and hug them both and enjoy your first night together - send us an owl when things are settled enough for us to come and meet her.' 

'Thank you both of you, all of you,’ Teddy said, hugging each of them in turn. 'You must all come round tomorrow and meet her, I love her so much already, I know you all will too-’

And, with one last kiss on Lily’s head, Teddy left, hurrying back to his family. 

Lily was still squealing - 'I bet Dora will be a bridesmaid at the wedding too, maybe I can carry her down the aisle for them!’ - Ginny was telling a revolted looking James how long he took to arrive, and Al was asking whether the baby was his niece or cousin. 

Harry turned away from them, in case they saw his face, and pretended to busy himself at the kitchen sink, washing out his glass. After a few moments, he felt Ginny’s arm slide around his waist, and her head lean against his shoulder. The kids were still making plenty of noise in the background. 

'You all right?’ she asked. 

'Yes,’ he said gruffly. 'He just reminded me a lot of Remus.' 

'He would be so proud,’ said Ginny. 'Isn’t it wonderful?’

Finally he let the tears fall - it was only his wife who was permitted to see them, and it was only the fact that his children were delightedly yelling in the background that meant he felt secure enough that they wouldn’t notice. 

'It feels like something has been repaired,’ Harry said. 

'It has,’ said Ginny. 'There’s a Lupin family again now - just like there’s a Potter one.' 

He hugged her, closing his eyes as he squeezed her tight. 

'Dad’s crying!’ yelled James. 'I knew he was!' 

Harry laughed, and wiped his hand against his face. 'Cheers, James.' 

'You’re getting soft in your old age,’ James said. His children went to him, and though they teased him they hugged him too.

He had managed it, he thought vaguely. He had managed not to be a reckless godfather - he had helped Teddy on his way to a family, and the arrival of Dora Lupin was simply another addition to his own too.


End file.
